The Alligator Story
Summary: A parable from Paul’s father, given at his 1984 Naval Academy induction — a manager shoots the nearest alligator; a leader survives the nearest threat while solving the real problem.
Sources: Handwritten.md; LinkedIn Posts.md (“The Alligator Story,” posted 2026-03-12) (original content, authored by Paul)
Last updated: 2026-07-07
In July 1984, at his U.S. Naval Academy induction, Paul’s father — an active-duty Navy Captain — took him aside before he went in to face Plebe Summer and offered this parable (source: Handwritten.md):
Imagine you are in a deep pit you cannot climb out of, surrounded by alligators. You have a pistol, and every day you are given one bullet. You must decide: which alligator do I shoot today? The closest one, or the pregnant one?
A manager will shoot the nearest alligator and live another day undamaged. But the leader will find a way to survive the nearest threat and deal with the real problem. You will recognize the leaders by this decision — and by their scars.
The distinction: management handles the immediate, visible threat; leadership additionally identifies and addresses the underlying, compounding problem (the “pregnant alligator”) even though it’s harder and costs more in the short term. Paul notes recurring “Alligator Moments” throughout his career — testing whether he could summon the courage to survive the immediate challenge while still focusing on the real, generative problem (source: Handwritten.md).
This is the personal/tactical counterpart to voyage-planning’s project-level claim that leadership matters most at moments of highest risk, and reinforces dont-paint-over-rust’s insistence on fixing root causes rather than surface symptoms.
The LinkedIn version is candid about the cost of choosing the pregnant alligator: “you will be misunderstood in the short term,” “you will disappoint people who benefit from the status quo,” and “you will carry the political and emotional scars long after the meeting ends.” The reframed test: “Am I using today’s bullet on the loudest problem — or on the problem that keeps creating problems?” (source: LinkedIn Posts.md)